


Orange

by tisfan



Series: Tony Stark Bingo [42]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bakery, Bakery and Coffee Shop, M/M, Meet-Cute, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-03
Updated: 2019-11-03
Packaged: 2021-01-22 12:44:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21302288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tisfan/pseuds/tisfan
Summary: Tony is looking for a very specific cake...006 - Orange - WinterIron - GenAdded as Bookmark toReader Collection
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Series: Tony Stark Bingo [42]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1030077
Comments: 76
Kudos: 459





	Orange

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MarvelousMenagerie (HiddenOne)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenOne/gifts).

The guy who came into Bucky’s pastry shop – which wasn’t titled Bucky’s Bakery, no matter how much Sam had pushed for the name, and they’d instead gone with something a little less cheesy, and the sign above the door read _Objects of My Confections_ – was not a regular.

Bucky knew that, because he’d have remembered this guy; smartly dressed with fanciful sunglasses, a shaped beard shaved within an inch of its life, full mouth, artfully tousled hair, and, as he walked around the shop, Bucky took thorough note – a great ass.

There were pastry cases lining three of the four walls. The fourth looked out over the patio and was where several of the indoor tables were arranged. At present, all the indoor and outdoor tables were full, a handful of people were leaning against the wall to eat, and the line was halfway out the door.

“Help you with something?” Bucky asked. He was the owner and main baker, but he also liked to be out with the customers, so he often lingered behind the counters, if he wasn’t actively baking.

“Maybe–” the guy said, leaning over to look in the case. Bucky kinda wanted to materialize on the other side of the store, to be able to gawk some more. He wasn’t a creeper, but damn, this man was beautiful.

“Maybe I can help you?” Bucky wondered. 

The man muttered something that Bucky didn’t quite hear, then peered even closer at a strawberry and champagne layer cake. Then he looked up. “So, uh, I did something really stupid– how much do you know about cakes?”

Bucky scoffed. “Uh, I’m a baker?”

“Oh, are you, great, thanks,” the man said. “I’m trying to find a cake.”

“Well, you’ve come to the right place.”

“A specific kind of cake,” the man said, a little desperately. “I don’t know what it’s called, I don’t know what’s in it. I ate it once, when I was a kid, and it was my favorite, the thing which all cakes are compared to and are lacking. I was hoping if I could see one, I’d be able to find out what it is. But I have literally been in every cake place in town, dozens of patisseries, and I’ve probably gained twenty pounds just from the smell, but I still don’t know what I’m looking for.”

“All right, Mr–?”

“Stark,” the man said. “Call me Tony.”

“Right, I’m Bucky, this is my place. Come on over here, sit down, and tell me what you remember about the cake.”

“Uh, right, okay,” Tony said. “Um. Let’s see, it wasn’t chocolate, so that eliminates a whole bunch of things, right?”

“There are more kinds of cake than you might imagine,” Bucky said. 

“Uh, so it was… pale yellow colored and it had cream in between the layers, not the same as the icing, which had almonds on it. And it was kind of dry, but not in a bad way. Just the top and bottom of the cake were– more flakey. Oh, and it had alcohol in it, I know because my mom was fussing about it. I thought it smelled like, I don’t know, fresh oranges? Does any of this sound familiar?”

“We’re narrowing it down,” Bucky said, encouragingly. “How tall was it? Do you remember?”

“Three layers, plus the icing and the filling,” Tony said, promptly. “But it wasn’t tall, you know. About– so?” He held his thumb and forefinger out.”

“That’s helpful,” Bucky said. “So, strange question, but a lot of places have regional specialties. Where were you?” Also, if Tony knew the name of the shop or restaurant, Bucky could probably track them down, given enough time.

“Let’s see,” Tony said, thoughtfully. “I mean, I was a kid, I didn’t really pay a lot of attention to my surroundings, but… well, Mama was speaking Italian, so we were probably in Italy. My dad, he didn’t like it when he didn’t know what she’s saying, so we didn’t speak Italian at home.”

Bucky rolled his eyes. He knew the type. 

“So, I think we were in Milan,” Tony said. “Mama tells me we saw the Last Supper painting, but I don’t remember it. Is that. I don’t know, useful in any way?”

“Sounds like it might be an Italian Diplomat cake, actually,” he said. “Um, it’s puff pastry on the top and bottom, sponge cake with liquor in the middle, and cream filling. No reason why someone couldn’t make it with Grand Marnier rather than, say, rum or brandy, which is traditional.”

“So you– um, have one?”

“Not at the moment, no,” Bucky admitted. “But I could make one for you. When would you need it by?”

“What’s your usual lead time for a custom cake?”

Bucky chuckled. “A few weeks, usually,” he said. “Business has been very good.”

Tony’s face fell. There was literally no other word for it. He went from smiling in delight to looking about ready to cry. “I– my mother’s in town,” he said, softly. “I… wanted to get it for her, before she leaves again. I don’t see her very often anymore. She and my father are divorced.”

“And you wanted to have the cake with her,” Bucky surmised. 

“I wanted to surprise her with it,” Tony said. “But you know, it’s okay, you’re busy, it was a dumb idea, I–”

“Sit down, Mr. Stark,” Bucky said, pulling out his order book. “It’s not a complicated cake, but it takes time for baking and chilling. I can have it for you– tomorrow at four-thirty?”

“You could? I mean, why?”

“I like a challenge,” Bucky said. “And my mother passed on last year. I… I opened the shop with the money she left me. Most of these recipes are hers. I’d… I’d have liked to have had one last piece of cake with her.”

Tony’s brown eyes went wide. “That’s… thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Bucky said. “Now, just let me get some details from you, and we’ll get started on giving you and your mom a second happy memory of cake.”

**Author's Note:**

> https://anitalianinmykitchen.com/diplomat-cake/


End file.
